{"id":13755,"date":"2023-11-24T15:01:09","date_gmt":"2023-11-24T15:01:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nhcoa.org\/es\/?p=13755"},"modified":"2023-11-24T15:12:18","modified_gmt":"2023-11-24T15:12:18","slug":"influenza-and-covid-19-similarities-and-differences","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nhcoa.org\/es\/influenza-and-covid-19-similarities-and-differences\/","title":{"rendered":"Influenza and COVID-19: Similarities and Differences"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before discussing the similarities and differences between influenza <\/strong>and COVID-19<\/strong>, we must remember that symptoms alone cannot determine which of the two diseases we are dealing with. A test is always required for an accurate diagnosis, and then adequate and prompt treatment can begin to reduce the risk of complications<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both influenza (flu) and COVID-19 are contagious respiratory illnesses, but are caused by different viruses. COVID-19 is caused by the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) infection<\/strong>, which was first detected in 2019 and caused the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2023. While influenza is caused by the influenza virus infection<\/strong>, which causes the seasonal influenza epidemic each year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

COVID-19 and influenza share many symptoms, so it is common for them to be mistaken for each other. They can also have different levels of these symptoms respectively. The most common symptoms for both COVID-19 and influenza include: fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath<\/strong> (feeling that you are out of breath), fatigue, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, muscle pain and body aches, headache, vomiting, diarrhea <\/strong>(which is usually more common in children with influenza, but can occur at any age in people with COVID-19).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, these two diseases differ in how long it takes for symptoms to appear (the incubation period). For influenza, symptoms appear one to four days after the infection<\/strong>, while in the case of COVID-19, symptoms may appear up to 14 days after infection<\/strong> and in many cases the person may be asymptomatic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regarding the spread, an individual infected with influenza transmits the infection to someone else starting one day before symptoms appear<\/strong>; in general, people who already have influenza symptoms are always contagious. For COVID-19, infected people can be contagious as early as two to three days before symptoms appear and up to eight days after symptoms appear<\/strong>. It is important to note that asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 can also spread the virus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It should also be noted that although the viruses that cause COVID-19 and influenza infections are thought to spread in similar ways, the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) is generally more contagious because it can spread more quickly and easily, and to more people than the influenza viruses.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both COVID-19 and influenza can cause severe illness. The groups of people most at risk are older adults, people with certain underlying conditions (including babies and children), and pregnant women.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, studies have shown that COVID-19 causes greater difficulties and can be more severe than influenza for some people, due to the complications that can result from the intensity of COVID-19 symptoms. Some people who have had COVID-19 may develop post-COVID-19 conditions. Even people without any underlying conditions can suffer severely from COVID-19, resulting in hospitalization for illnesses related to the heart, lungs, or kidnies. In some cases, people without any underlying conditions have even died due to a severe COVID-19 infection. Whereas individuals infect with influenza, normally recover on their own within a few days to two weeks, while only some people develop severe complications requiring hospitalization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

The only way to reduce infection and risk of complications is vaccination. In the case of COVID-19, vaccination is always necessary, along with the booster doses as needed.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

There are several different FDA-approved influenza vaccines produced each year to protect against all the types of influenza viruses that are expected to circulate that year. Therefore, it is necessary to get vaccinated once a year<\/strong>. In the case of COVID-19, the vaccination schedule is constantly updated and the latest boosters are required<\/strong> to be up to date, depending on the conditions of the individuals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both vaccines are available at any health center near you and for more information, you can visit the website of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD): https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/ncird\/index.html <\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

References: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/espanol.cdc.gov\/flu\/symptoms\/flu-vs-covid19.htm#:~:text=Signos%20y%20s%C3%ADntomas,-Similitudes%3A&text=Tanto%20el%20COVID%2D19%20como,Tos<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/espanol.cdc.gov\/flu\/about\/keyfacts.htm#:~:text=La%20influenza%20es%20una%20enfermedad,puede%20llevar%20a%20la%20muerte.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/ncird\/index.html<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Before discussing the similarities and differences between influenza and COVID-19, we must remember that symptoms alone cannot determine which of the two diseases we are dealing with. A test is always required for an accurate diagnosis, and then adequate and prompt treatment can begin to reduce the risk of complications. Both influenza (flu) and COVID-19 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13757,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13755","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"yoast_head":"\nInfluenza and COVID-19: Similarities and Differences - NHCOA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nhcoa.org\/es\/influenza-and-covid-19-similarities-and-differences\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Influenza and COVID-19: Similarities and Differences - NHCOA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Before discussing the similarities and differences between influenza and COVID-19, we must remember that symptoms alone cannot determine which of the two diseases we are dealing with. 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